The Australian sharemarket was subdued at the open, following lacklustre leads from the US and weighed down by iron ore players. However, the ASX200 gradually picked up pace in the morning session to ascend back into the green, as gains by banks, gold miners and tech stocks neutralised the broader decline.
Commonwealth
(ASX:CBA) played a vital role in the financials rally, erasing record highs and surpassing the $100 mark for the first time.
Gold-focused mining heavyweights are also doing the heavy lifting in the wake of a five-month high price of spot gold, as Newcrest Mining
(ASX:NCM) and Northern Star Resources
(ASX:NST) were tracking 2.2 and 3.5 per cent higher respectively at lunchtime.
At midday, the ASX 200 is tracking 0.1 per cent higher at 7123.
Economic newsThe total volume of completed construction work has exceeded analysts’ expectations by 0.2 per cent and increased 2.4 per cent to nearly 52$ billion, according to the ABS’ latest figures for the March quarter. However, construction activity has not returned to pre-pandemic levels, as the figures represent a 1.1 per cent decrease year on year for the period.
Best and worst performersThe best-performing sector is information Technology, up 1.92 per cent. The worst-performing sector is Health Care, down 0.62 per cent.
The best-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is ALS
(ASX:ALQ), trading 11.01 per cent higher at $12.10. It is followed by shares in Nextdc
(ASX:NXT) and Regis Resources
(ASX:RRL).
The worst-performing stock in the S&P/ASX 200 is Kogan.com
(ASX:KGN), trading 6.4 per cent lower at $9.96. It is followed by shares in Redbubble
(ASX:RBL) and OZ Minerals
(ASX:OZL).
Commodities and the dollarGold is trading at US$1906.30 an ounce.
One Australian dollar is buying 77.76 US cents.
